As CITES CoP17 closes in Johannesburg, South Africa, the African Wildlife Foundation applauds the parties for their votes in accordance with our recommendations in all but one instance – the African lion.

On 3 October, in Dar es Salaam, the Tanzania Wildlife Authority (TAWA) detection dog unit arrested a suspect in possession of illegal elephant ivory. Witnesses reported the suspect to be Mahadhi Mohamed Naoda and observed the TAWA team searching a vehicle and proceeding to an arrest.

Today, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora convened on Proposals 14, 15 and 16 focusing on the African elephant. AWF had called for the rejection of all three proposals in our position and rationale prior to the Convention.

Parties at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, have endorsed the closure of all domestic ivory markets worldwide. "The decision taken at CITES to adopt a resolution calling on nations to implement domestic bans makes it clear that the overwhelming majority of thoughtful and fully informed parties now concur with the need to totally end the trade in ivory in every corner of the globe," said Patrick Bergin, CEO of AWF.